MOM STOP: Kids know more about love than they can express

Published: Sunday, February 10, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at 7:23 p.m.

Any parent can tell you how their heart melted the first time their child smiled. Or laughed, or gave them their first hug.

As a parent, you give your children your heart, you love them with your whole being, and so that instant where they show their first signs of affection — it seems like the world stops, just for that moment.

Although my 18-month-old son has a limited vocabulary, he gives what we call “love pats.” Whether we’re coming home from work or we’re playing together on the living room floor, he’ll come up, give a simple “pat” on the back, usually followed by a random hug with his head on a shoulder.

My daughter, too, has her way of showing love. At 2 years old, whenever we told her “I love you,” she would answer back, “I you!” She may have forgotten the “love,” but the love was very much still there. At 3, she says the whole phrase now. But in those sweet moments when she is about to go to sleep, she still says, “I you, momma. I you.”

The thing is, kids understand love long before they can actually say it. They just show it in their own way.

In honor of Valentine’s Day this week, we’ve asked local preschoolers about love. Here are their answers, in their own words:

<p>Any parent can tell you how their heart melted the first time their child smiled. Or laughed, or gave them their first hug. </p><p>As a parent, you give your children your heart, you love them with your whole being, and so that instant where they show their first signs of affection — it seems like the world stops, just for that moment.</p><p>Although my 18-month-old son has a limited vocabulary, he gives what we call “love pats.” Whether we're coming home from work or we're playing together on the living room floor, he'll come up, give a simple “pat” on the back, usually followed by a random hug with his head on a shoulder. </p><p>My daughter, too, has her way of showing love. At 2 years old, whenever we told her “I love you,” she would answer back, “I you!” She may have forgotten the “love,” but the love was very much still there. At 3, she says the whole phrase now. But in those sweet moments when she is about to go to sleep, she still says, “I you, momma. I you.”</p><p>The thing is, kids understand love long before they can actually say it. They just show it in their own way.</p><p>In honor of Valentine's Day this week, we've asked local preschoolers about love. Here are their answers, in their own words:</p><p><b>-</b> “Love means help. My brother helps me with my car seat because he loves me.” — Ainslee Hollyhand, 4. </p><p><b>-</b> “Love is painting, and colors. I draw for my mommy and daddy because I love them.” — Jefferson Morris, 3. </p><p><b>-</b> “Elephants. I really, really like them.” — Joshua Bullard, 3. </p><p><b>-</b> “Love is loving people. Giving them cards to show them that you love them.” — Addison Bell, 4. </p><p><b>-</b> “Love is a friend. You love them with all your heart.”— Kennedy Avant, 3.</p><p><b>-</b> “I don't know what love means, but I love my mommy and my daddy.” — Ella Dunn, 3. </p><p><b>-</b> “Love is how I feel about my Ranger, my dog.” Sarah Davis, 5. </p><p><b>-</b> “Like God loves you — like that!” — Paxton Heslop, 5. </p><p><b>-</b> “Love is being happy.” — Sara Beth Williams, 4. </p><p><b>-</b> “Love means my mommy and my daddy. I will give them hugs.” — Rocco Cicatiello, 4. </p><p><b>-</b> “It's when you love someone and you care for them.” — Jane Hollowell, 5.</p><p><b>-</b> “Love is like when you love someone, you hug them.” — Evan Smith, 5. </p><p><b>-</b> “Love means the heart.” — Grant Underwood, 4. </p><p> </p><p><b>-</b> “Sharing, singing, kissing.” — Davis Rhodes, 4. </p><p><b>-</b> “It means you like somebody.” — Giles Burnett, 5. </p><p><b>-</b>“It is sweet, like my mama and daddy.” — Xavier Buysse-Williams, 3.</p><p><b>-</b> “Love means that you are nice.” — Walker Green, 4.</p>